Chocolate Mint Honey Candies
One of my favorite chocolatey snacks is Trader Joe’s Dark Chocolate Honey Mints. They have no added sugar and contain just 3 ingredients: dark chocolate, honey, and mint extract. These are a great snack for winter adventures because most snack bars freeze and are impossible to bite into, and these actually taste best when frozen. I have shared my clone recipe below.
Ingredients:
Two 4 oz dark chocolate baking bars (100% cacao)
¼ cup honey
1/3 tsp peppermint extract
Round or square silicone molds
Instructions:
Melt the chocolate. You can do this on the stove by placing the chocolate in a heatproof bowl and placing in a water bath, or you can melt the chocolate in the microwave (microwave in 30 second increments. It takes about 1.5-2 minutes per ½ bar).
Prepare the honey by adding the peppermint extract to the honey and mixing thoroughly. You may add more or less peppermint to taste.
Use a teaspoon to drizzle a thin layer of chocolate on the bottom of your silicone squares (or circles as seen in the photos). I usually tap the spoon on the bottom of the square and then spread the chocolate around, letting it go a few millimeters up on the sides to “catch” the honey in the next step.
Place a small dollop (about 1/4 teaspoon) of honey in the dark chocolate square. It’s okay if the chocolate is still liquid because it will “hold” the honey in and prevent it from spreading to the edges. If the honey reaches the edges, it will leak out once the bars are frozen. I try to have the dollop of honey take up about 2/3 of the square. Remember, this is what will be sweetening your chocolates, so if you don’t have enough honey (or you use too much chocolate), it may be bitter.
Drizzle another teaspoon of melted chocolate over the honey. I start by circling the chocolate around the honey to make sure it’s all contained within the chocolate, and then I drizzle the chocolate on top to make sure the honey is completely covered. Try not to go too thick with the chocolate, but go thick enough that it covers all the honey.
Place the silicone tray in the freezer. Make sure to keep it level.
After it’s frozen, pop the chocolate squares out of the silicone tray and enjoy! Store in the freezer.
